YAY! Hudson's Bay is Bringing Saks to Canada

Saks Fifth Avenue (aka. shoe heaven) © BrokenSphere / Wikimedia Commons

The girly road trips were fun, I'll admit. And I did enjoy the adrenaline rush of bitchy border guard tête-à-têtes. But yesterday's retail announcement means that our frenzied cross-border shopping trips will be the things we only tell our grandkids about.

Me: "When Grandma was a girl, we would head to the States for something they called 'Black Fridaaay...'

Grandkids: "Ooooh! Tell us more, Grandma!"

Me: "I almost got trampled to death 5 times, just to save $5 on a pair of pumps. We would shop for back-to-school clothes all through the night when everyone else was sleeping. Once I almost lost a kidney when another woman and I duked it out over a Prada clutch. Luckily, I had the most vicious elbows in the place."

WWD reported yesterday that as suspected, Hudson's Bay has agreed to buy Saks Fifth Avenue for a whopping $2.9 billion. Saks could open up to seven full line stores and 25 Off-5th outlets in Canada, according to Richard Baker, CEO of Hudson’s Bay Company.

“We are going to move as quickly as we can,” Baker said in reference to bringing Saks to Canada. “There is a lot of opportunity to accomplish that rollout very quickly.” Read: Nordstrom is coming, so we've got to bust it.

Um, SO awesome, right? Are you as excited as I am? Anyone want to arrange a little shoe shopping trip when it opens? I'll be sure to keep you in the loop as I hear more Saks news!

xx

Love Is All You Need

A model backstage at the Burberry Prorsum Fall '13 Show. Photo via Fairchild. 

Here's me, wearing the new jeans I just picked up at Hudson's Bay. Love! 

The heart - that universal symbol of everything L.O.V.E. - hasn't historically been all that trendy. Sure, we all love love, but the heart, well, it's gotten a bit of bad rap in the fashion world. While dots and stripes are always chic, hearts are sometimes met with a bit of condescension. Hearts? Oh, they're so obvious. They're so Valentine's. They're so heart-like. Really?

Well, love will prevail, as they say, and right now, the oft-maligned heart is proving itself to be pretty lovable after all. For Fall '13, Burberry's Christopher Bailey unabashedly covered his collection in hearts while Holly Fulton and Aquilano.Rimondi did the same, sending heart-printed tops and dresses down the runway, too. And while critics of the heart print often dismiss it for being cheesy, these designers show that when done up right, hearts can be sophisticated, luxe and totally grown-up...

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Preen Teams Up with ALDO RISE for Fall '13

A model on the runway at Preen by Thornton Bregazzi's Fall 2013 show. Photo via Fairchild.

Happy Monday, lovelies! To start your workweek off on the right foot, ALDO RISE just announced the launch of its fourth collaboration with London-based designers Justin Thornton and Thea Bregazzi of Preen by Thornton Bregazzi. The fierce shoes were shown as part of Preen’s Fall/Winter 2013 runway collection presented during London Fashion Week and I was hoping that they would make their way to ALDO stores for Fall. Luckily, my shoe dreams have come true (again!)

The PREEN x ALDO RISE collection is comprised of three key styles; the collection includes an ankle-strap pump in powder blue, fiery red and black; a triple-buckle, front-zip shootie in red and black; and an ankle boot in powder blue (NEED this boot!) and black. With a chic 5mm island platform and a collage of textures in pony hair, leather, and suede, the feminine silhouettes are tough yet decidedly sexy.

The latest PREEN x ALDO RISE Collection will be available this October at select ALDO stores worldwide and online at aldoshoes.com/rise, ranging from $160 to $230 CAD. Time to start saving your loonies, ladies...

xx

Under $100 Summer Dresses

The lazy days of summer are officially upon us, calling for a new, prettier kind of uniform: the throw-on-and-go dress. Whether maxi, mini or anywhere in between, a good dress will be your go-to all steamy season long.

Check out all of my pretty under-$100 picks here.

Hope your week's off to a great start!

xx

Sneak Peek: The Banana Republic L'Wren Scott Holiday Collection

Photos courtesy Banana Republic

Banana Republic has already teamed up with well-known designers like Milly and Issa, so the announcement of another collab wasn't a huge surprise. But here's the shocking part: this time BR has wooed none other than the notoriously exclusive L'Wren Scott. How amazing is this?! The 6'3" glamazon designer (and longtime girlfriend of Mick Jagger) is known for her super-luxe, impossibly-expensive designs but with her first big retail collection, looks like Scott is finally ready for mass-marketdom.

Banana Republic Creative Director and Executive Vice President of Design, Simon Kneen says, “We share an appreciation for genuine luxury, beautiful fabrics and unexpected details. The designs created for this collection bring a modern approach to pieces you will love forever.”  

“A partnership of this scale was a first for me, and I was very excited to find a true partner in Simon,” says L’Wren Scott. “Through this collection, we were able to bring our shared vision to life and the end result is a capsule we’re both so proud to call our own. It beautifully combines the ultra-feminine with wearable polish and will bring a sexy confidence to our consumers.”

The limited-edition Banana Republic L’Wren Scott Collection is designed to inspire glam holiday parties out on the town or at home.  The more than 50-piece collection includes apparel and accessories for women, ranging from sequin party dresses and bejewelled cardigans, to feminine, tailored jeans and lace dresses, plus accessories like chain-handled clutches (that double as jewellery), striped cashmere blankets, berets and totes.

Three original prints are featured prominently throughout the capsule. A dramatic lip print (a Rolling Stone reference?), a print of romantic peonies, and finally, a candy stripe of black, Ultra Violet, Poster Red and Lipstick Red. Not a big fan of the red/purple/black combo but for the legendary L'Wren, I'm willing to reconsider.

The capsule launches at select Banana Republic retail locations worldwide and online December 5, 2013, just in time for Christmas shopping. I can name some girls (Me, Myself, and I) who will be putting this right at the top of their lists. Exciting, yes?!

xx